The Stone That Revealed Emrys
by VegetarianPercussionist
Summary: King Arthur and his knights stumble upon a beautiful stone that shows them images made out of starlight. They see Merlin use magic in the images. Is he really a sorcerer? Reveal fic.
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

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><p>Picking up the crystal shard Arthur looked over it with curiosity. It was brighter than any gem he had ever seen. It had a pulsating glow, and a deep yellow color that drew you in almost like you were under an enchantment. He ran his gloved fingers over the surface, brushing the softened edges of the stone. The gem had to have been worth a small fortune, it was the size of a baby's fist.<p>

"That stone sure is a beauty if I ever did see one." Arthur lifted his head up to spare a glance at Gwaine. The other knights were just as intrigued with the gem as he was, small sparkles of light beginning to cover the walls of the small room they were in as the jewel became even brighter and began to ignite the whole room in a beautiful stunning light. The men gasped as it did this, Lancelot taking a step back in surprise, his eyes widening as the light that the room was engulfed in began to form into shapes that were whizzing around to fast to make out what they were. It was like looking up at the stars, looking at a glittering nebula that rested high above the earth.

"Magnificent." The light twisted and turned, molding into new and bizarre forms with each passing second. The small band of men were in awe. The shapes swirled round and round and began to slow, turning into a beautiful image of light. The light twisted, turning into the image of a kingdom. A castle. There were tall curving spires and strong iron gates. Stories high brick walls and towers that reached high into the sky. Arthur took in a shaky breath recognizing the magnificent and ancient palace at once,

"Camelot."

The glittering light tucked and turned once again before their eyes, slowly rearranging itself into an image of a young man whose eyes gleamed with a gold color brighter than a thousand suns. The image swirled again before the knights could clarify who it was and jumped back with startled shouts as the face of the great witch Morgana appeared in the light, her cat-like grin plastered to her face as she laughed. The chilling cackle reverberated throughout the room and just as quickly as it had appeared it vanished as a gruesome scream cut through the air. A scream that sounded so desperate and filled with anguish. Then the young man appeared again in the starlight, his gold eyes burning a cold deathly glare to the occupants of the room and his mouth contorted into a vicious smirk that would have sent the devil cowering.

"Æledfýr dynt dún fram þæs éastrodor, ansíen sum ætforanweall ymbgang Camelot ond áscildan hit." His mouth spilt out the mysterious language like fire, hissing and shouting at the top of his lungs with an air of utmost authority and power. The young man screamed for the world to hear, sending chills down the knights body's at the power the man possessed.

In a shower of glowing sparks the starlight image of the man and all the other shapes swirled back into the glowing stone that still rested in Arthur's palm. The light quickly and suddenly dissipated from the small room, taking with it all of the images that it came with. An icy silence filled the air once the stone had returned to it's normal vibrant yellow. The only noise was that of the cool, gushing wind outside the small hut they had taken shelter in.

The five knights turned to their king with mixed expressions. Arthur dropped the still glowing stone, walking a few steps backwards before his back came into contact with one of the stone cold walls of the hut. His hands trembled as he tried to steady himself against the wall. Those images that he saw in the starlight. That young man that carried himself with such a deadly confidence and had burning eyes that went straight through your soul. There was no denying it. The others had seen it as well. Elyan, Percival, Gwaine, Lancelot, Leon. They all saw what he saw. That man in the starlight was absolutely and undeniably a wizard. A sorcerer. A magician. That young man was undeniably and absolutely Merlin.


	2. You Can't Come To Conclusions

**Author's Note: Thank you to everyone who read the prologue! I really hope that you enjoyed it. So now I present to you the first chapter of The Stone That Revealed Emrys. I love constructive criticism, so please review, even if you're just going to say a few words. :)**

** Also, a special thank you to the following people for submitting a review on the Prologue, you guys gave me some encouragement to write this here chapter that you're about to read! So thank you:** _Kaminari Rin, OceanHime, CosmicEssence, Janssye, lozzabluebell _**and **_FireChildSlytherin5_**.**

**Enjoy the chapter**

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><p>Merlin shuffled down the corridor monotonously. Gaius had sent him off on another medicine run; he had to deliver a salve for Lady Maridor's rash, give Sir Belcour his daily pain medication for his leg that was injured in a long ago battle between Camelot and who knows what other kingdom, and make sure Sir Edvin was given a sleeping draft and a mixture of various herbal remedies that would help him get over his recent cold that had caused him much trouble.<p>

Merlin snorted, "Gaius is just _trying_ to overwork me. He knows how many things I have to do for Arthur everyday yet he's still persistent on giving me these mundane tasks." He ran a hand through his choppy raven hair in frustration. If anyone needed more work to add to their schedule it wasn't him, after all, he needed to muck out the stables that the knights horses were in, change the sheets on Arthur's bed, help Gwen with the towers of dirty laundry that belonged to half the inhabitants of the castle, make sure Arthur had a meal sent up to his chambers for dinner once he and the other knights returned from their leisurely hunting trip, go pick herbs for Gaius to make sure they had enough in stock, clean Arthur's armor… _Great merciful God_, he thought as he stopped walking and his face paled. _I have to finish all that and more _after_ I get done with Gaius' work_.

"Why me!" Shouting at no one in particular he began shuffling about the castle again, earning a few amused and confused glances from other servants. "Why is there always so much to be done. I'm certain that if I keep this up I may collapse from stress! This is just to much!" Knocking on Lady Maridor's chamber door he delivered her salve with a smile, then abruptly spun on his heels and let a frown settle on his face once she closed her door then he marched onwards towards the East side of the castle.

Sighing he ran a slender hand along the wall of the corridor he was in, feeling the coolness of the stone that made up the rest of the castle. That was a unique thing about the castle that he had learned, the stone that made up a major portion of the castle was always cool to the touch. Even on the hottest summer days the walls and floors on the inside of the castle would have a pleasing chill to them. He chuckled, _You'd really believe that Arthur would have more personal servants. Being the King of Camelot you would expect it wouldn't you. But nope. Just me. Good old Merlin is the only one in the entire kingdom that gets to be the personal servant of the greatest prat that's ever lived._

Walking through the archway that led to the kitchens Merlin was greeted with the overwhelming aroma of spices, fresh fruit, baking bread, and vegetable soup. It was a pleasant smell, but it never failed to make you hungry. He tried not to smile to much as he snatched up a bundle of grapes off one of the noble's lunch plates. He was pretty sure everyone in the castle had snuck something out of the kitchens at one time, you just had to have a little snack when you got in there.

After turning corners a dozen times and climbing up an innumerable amount of steps he finally made it to Sir Belcour's room and handed him what he needed and started off again through the castle. Halfway back to his own chambers Merlin was whistling a peppy and charming tune but was abruptly cut off.

"Get down, and get down now!" The wind was almost knocked out of his body as someone hissed out their words fervently. Shoving him harshly against the stone floor and sliding to collide with a wall, his head smashing off the hard stone audibly.

Seeing stars he fought to get back up, "Just what the hell do you think you're doing! You could have-" A small, rough hand was forced over his mouth and only then did he realize that it was Guinevere that had barreled into him in the hallway, her face flushed and her breath coming out in gasps as if she had been sprinting for her life.

Seeing the immediate confusion on his face Gwen spoke to him rapidly, "Merlin there's a problem. A big problem. We're to be killed I'm sure. Dear Lord, we've got to do something Merlin! Come quickly, we have to run to the West wing of the castle. Quickly, Merlin. Quickly!" They were rushing through rooms and jumping down stairs as soon as Gwen helped him to his feet. Gwen was trying not to fall over her skirts as she ran, pulling Merlin down hallway after hallway, with each passing second her soft face became more worried.

"Gwen! What has happened?" He demanded in a tone of panic. His cerulean eyes widening as he feared for the worst. It really would have been comical had the situation been different. A fairly tall and bewildered young man being hauled down foyer after foyer by a truly panicking woman who was shouting garbled nonsense about being 'found out' and that 'they had to hurry before it was to late'.

"I'll tell you when we get there Merlin, you'll see just what I mean!" They skirted a corner sharply, almost knocking over two older noble women who gasped and hurried away quickly so that they weren't ran into by the two servants.

"I need an explanation now, Gwen!"

"It's not important right now!"

"Guinevere!"

"Just come with me!"

"It's pretty important if we're running from it!" Gwen skidded to a surprise halt in a half darkened room that they had stormed into, causing Merlin to slam violently into her smaller body, sending them both onto the stone floor in a disarray of limbs and violent cursing.

Jumping to his feet, Merlin helped Gwen up from the floor as she struggled to not trip and fall again over her beige and fuchsia colored dress. Then, as soon as she was steady on her feet she whizzed over to the other side of the room and slammed the small metal latch that was on the door into place, locking them in and ensuring that no one could get into the room.

"Gwen, what happened? You said 'They found out'. What do you mean by that?" Merlin began to panic, the distraught look on Gwen's face not helping him stay calm. His mouth stretched into a firm line as he fought to keep his composure. _She can't possibly mean that someone here in the castle found out who I am or what I can do. That would be ridiculous, because for God's sake _she _doesn't even know about my magic! But if someone did find out, and they told her… _Merlin groaned and covered his face with his hands in exasperation, his slender fingers moving up to massage his temples. _I'm jumping to conclusions. This has happened so many times before, I think they all know but they don't. Just relax. _He took a three deep breaths, inhaling and exhaling until his breathing became steadier. But paranoia still nagged at him. _What if someone does know and Gwen's just trying to help me in some way…_

His thoughts were dismissed when Gwen smacked him over the head with one of her hands, probably a little harder than she had meant to because his head was sent reeling for the second time that day, his vision blurring for a few quick seconds before a sharp pain started to set in around his left temple on his head. He was sure there would be a bruise there in a couple hours due to smashing that side of his head against one of the walls earlier and now Gwen slapping him.

He groaned at the injury before looking ahead of himself to see Gwen standing in front of him, her hands fidgeting at her sides and her face a mask of worry.

"S-sorry about that, it's just, you were dazing off and, well, this is not a time to be getting lost in your thoughts!" Gwen stuttered out, switching her worry ridden face for one that was full of guilt and uncertainty.

"Gwen… tell me what has happened."

She sighed and marched over to the opposite side of the room, and only when she turned back around to face him did he realize that they were in one of the laundry chambers with piles of garments stacked around the dark room and many wash buckets that were used to clean them. The smell of stale water made the room an uncomfortable place to be in, the fact that the room was also unlit gave it an even more unpleasant feeling. The only light coming through some of the tall but plain arched stained glass windows that lined one side of the room, the bright afternoon sunlight streaming through the colorful glass and creating bizarre and frightful shadows that fell over parts of the room.

"Merlin." Gwen's tone was steady and her face calm, but you could see the fear in her eyes. "Merlin, they found out! The noble's have found out that we haven't washed any of their clothing for the last week!"

_What._

Gwen was pacing back and forth across the carpeted stone floor, talking franticly about how they should have washed everything last week. That they were sure to be dead when the noble's had nothing but shoes to wear.

"They'll hang us by the noose they will! I'll tell you what we've got to do, you go round up half of the council members servants, they were supposed to do most of the washing in the first place it's as much their fault as ours, and I can go get some of the cooking girls to help. It won't be so bad if we get at least half of their clothing washed." Her face brightened up at her plan.

Merlin's mind was blank. Completely blank. He had truly thought that his magic was somehow involved. _Nope. No magic here. Definitely not anything magical about washing._ He soundlessly walked over to the door, unlocked it, closed it behind him, and then purposefully smacked his head against the thick wooden door. Promptly cursing himself on why he did such as a searing zing of pain shot through the left side of his head again.

Trudging back to his and Gaius' chambers in an irritated state Merlin wondered just how many more times he have to suffer through events like this that gave him the theory that his secret was out. It was to stressful for him. Knowing that he had magic. Knowing that he was a warlock, that he was one day destined to be the most powerful man of magic the world had ever seen, that he was Emrys. Knowing that he had saved so many people, so many times and was never acknowledged for doing so. That he had saved the kingdom of Camelot from evils to many times to count, and no one gave him a second glance.

_It would be so easy. Just to let all of them know._ Once back in his room he took out his book of spells that Gaius had given him from beneath one of the floorboards in his room, the wood making sporadic creaks and groans as he set it back in place. He began flipping through the old and worn pages of the book, the paper it was made up of was yellowed from age and torn up at the sides. The pages were filled with a vast variety of spells, from simply creating a flame in one's palm, to difficult recipes for colorful looking potions that would let you induce someone into a state that resembled a coma, but allowed them to wake up from it in a few hours.

_If I could just let them all know that I had magic… But that's not possible is it. Arthur is not his father, but is no immediate friend of magic. _He sighed and rolled onto his small bed, dropping the book on the floor and making a mental note to pick it up and hide it again later.

The sound of many horses and angry shouts coming from the courtyard echoed of the walls and into Merlin's room, rousing him from his thoughts. He swung off his bed and headed over to his window, peering down into the courtyard to see who it was that was causing such a ruckus.

A grin forming on his face, Merlin looked down at the small band of men who were now dismounting their horses and speaking heatedly with each other in the stone courtyard. Arthur and the others were finally back from that idiotic hunting trip of their's that they left on a week ago. They thought it was such a great idea to go hunting, and of course as soon as they had left and were far into some of the thick forests that surrounded Camelot nature decided she would blast the area with a fierce rainstorm. There was thunder and lightning that made the ground shake, and rain coming down so fast that it whipped your face like tiny needles. He was glad that he was not a part of that little trip, he couldn't wait to see Arthur's face when he asked him how the weather was on their trip. Merlin chuckled and headed away from his window, beginning his short trek down to the courtyard to greet the knights and Arthur. Or just tease them, it was fun to watch Arthur get irritated. Though they never really got mad with each other, Arthur and himself found it delightfully amusing to watch the other get flustered and annoyed.

Jumping down the last cream colored steps that led up to the castle entrance, Merlin stopped at the last step and called over to Arthur and the others.

"Hey! How was the trip?"

They small group of men all turned around quickly, all of their eyes on Merlin and looking like they had just seen a ghost rise up and out of it's grave. Arthur opened his mouth to speak but failed to, instead choosing to keep looking at Merlin like the world was going to end and he was the reason why. It was not until Gwaine and Leon started shouting, and Percival took out his sword and pointed it at Merlin did he realize that they weren't staring at him, they were all staring at what was _behind _him_._

Before he could turn around to get a look at whatever it was that was there a massive ball of dark blue fire was hurled past him, missing his body by about a meter as it came past him, the heat of it seeming to scorch the right side of his body though it was not enough to burn him. Shouts were everywhere now, women screaming, nobles shrieking and men yelling. The warning bell was sounded as dozens of the blue fire blasts whizzed past him, moving by so fast that they knocked him over with the gusts of wind they created, flipping him over and over until he smashed into one of the stone statues that littered the sides of the courtyard, the sharply cut metal digging into his right forearm until it created a gash, blood slowly starting to flow from it.

There was a terrible screech of laughter from somewhere behind him. Whipping his head around, Merlin caught site of Arthur and the other knights diving to the ground as a giant gush of wind slaughtered the air, knocking down everything and everyone that was in it's path.

The gust hit him, shoving him against the statue a second time, his head getting banged into the metal with audible thuds at the strength of the wind.

When the wind stopped, Merlin looked around franticly for Arthur and attempted to stand up. With so much damage done to his head he knew it was not going to be possible to stay conscious long, but as soon as he stood up he saw a miniature army of red cloaks rushing forward to where the disgusting laughter had come from. The knights of Camelot, including Arthur, ran towards what he could only assume was a sorcerer with great power, he could only assume though, because his vision became blurred and try as he did to keep walking forwards his consciousness slipped away from him quickly. His body falling harshly against the stone ground. As blood started to stream lightly from another cut on Merlin's head, Arthur watched from across the courtyard as his servant collapsed.

Arthur made a move to run to him, but instead launched himself at the sorcerer who was creating such chaos. Buildings were burning to the ground and at least three knights had been killed in the attack already. The sorcerer in question was a sight to behold. Wild red hair that stuck out every which way and dressed in loose fitting black trousers, knee high brown boots, a grey tunic, and a flowing black coat. The way he laughed was almost driving the young king mad.

Getting ready to attack again, Arthur called half of his knights around him in a protective blockade.

He raised his sword with ease above his head, getting ready to signal an attack. "Stay close! Don't let him out of your sight!" With that, Arthur moved his arm forward, and he and his knights charged.

The sorcerer laughed and hissed out a string of foreign words that sent flying chunks of stone towards the knights. Arthur gasped as one of the large shards collided with his head. He heard Leon shout his name in panic before his eyes rolled back into his head and he collapsed to the ground, the same as Merlin had minutes before. He heard shouts everywhere, could smell the burning flesh of his knights that had been struck with fire and the smoldering houses that were filling the area with a thick smoke. Then everything went black.


	3. Nightmares and Trust

**Author's Note: It's not as long as the last chapter, but I still finally got it up here. School is becoming a little hectic as of late, so I don't know when I'm going to be able to update. But know that I'll always be working on it and trying to get it posted here as fast as I can! :)**

**Thank you, thank you, thank you for all the reviews I received on the last chapter! It really makes my day when I get a new review. I seriously just sit there and stare at my computer screen for a bit when I get a review and I kinda let out some really weird giggles and then I read the review. You guys and gals make me feel accomplished~. :) So thank you: **_afanoflife__, nycorrall, Emmocloe, sarajm, FireChildSlytherin5, innerflame, complexities, lozzabluebell, Aubrey-Sky-Blue, Kaminari Rin, CosmicEssence, angelrider13, _**and **_Magic Cabbage_**.**

**Enjoy the chapter**

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><p><em>He couldn't believe it, he just couldn't. It was insane to even think so, but all the proof they needed was right in front of them. They all saw what he saw. That man in the starlight was absolutely and undeniably a wizard. A sorcerer. A magician. That young man was undeniably and absolutely Merlin.<em>

_Arthur was trying to calm himself. His mind swirled with different emotions, not able to pick just one out to express how he felt at the moment. He sat down on the cold dirt floor of the hut, trying to get a grip on the current situation and make sense of everything. _

_Confused. He was definitely confused. But he was angry too, as well as excited and… sad. The young king sighed, wondering if it was even possible to feel all those emotions at the same time. He chuckled to himself and shook his head, knowing full well that he had no idea what he was supposed to do about this situation._

"_Sire," Arthur turned his head to look at who was speaking, "I know that what we all just saw was… shocking… I know how you're feeling, we all do," Lancelot gestured to the other knights, and continued speaking directly to Arthur, " but you need to understand something." Lancelot began to speak again but stopped as a flash of guilt crossed his face. _

_Arthur addressed his knight and started to stand up, "Lancelot, I-"_

"_No. Sit back down." Lancelot cut him off with a snap and paced up to his king, shock on all of the knights faces at the way the brown haired man just spoke to their king. The knights and Arthur were friends, like brothers to one another, there was no denying that, and they often let down all the barriers and walls that were supposed to stand between a king and his subjects when they were with each other. But they still had a respect towards Arthur that would make them think more than twice before snapping at him in such a manner._

_Lancelot quickly threw an apologetic look at Arthur before nodding in gratitude that the king had sat back down. He then gestured for the rest of the knights to have a seat as well. They objected, but followed suit when Arthur asked them to sit._

_Looking around at the small band of confused, irritated, and tired men that sat around him in a tight circle Lancelot took a deep breath to calm himself, "There is something you need to understand, all of you." he paused, "Well, there are quite a few things that you need to understand… I can tell you as much as I know, but there is only one man that can convince you that what I'm going to tell you is true."_

_But before the knight could explain what he meant, he was engulfed fully by a vicious blue orb of fire. All of a sudden the ground caved in beneath Arthur and the young king tumbled down and down into a black oblivion. He saw flashes and images. Merlin, his eyes cruel and cold as he looked upon the city of Camelot, his eyes blazing with hatred and disgust as they flashed molten gold. _

_Then he saw himself, locked in a damp and dark cell with Morgana looking down at him with a hideous and triumphant smirk as Merlin stood behind her and laughed a frightful laugh that sent chills down the back of Arthur's neck. _

_He called out to Merlin, asked him for help, but the black haired man merely turned his back and stepped out the cell, motioning for Morgana to follow him. She did as he told her and then it all dissolved, all Arthur saw was black. Then that same cold and insane laugh that he had heard Merlin emit came back and Arthur was face to face with Merlin. The young king screamed as he felt a hot searing pain rip it's way through his chest. He looked down and realized that a sword had run him clear through, and letting his eyes travel from the sword to it's wielder he screamed again as the blade was pulled free, leaving him with a sickening sound of splintering bones and sloshing blood._

_Merlin cleaned the bloodied steel blade on his trousers and smirked at his king. Then his eyes flashed gold._

Arthur woke up screaming, his dream fading away rapidly. His body was drenched in a cold sweat and he clutched his chest as his breathing slowly went back down to a normal rate. _That was just a dream. It was all just a dream_.

There was no gaping wound in his chest, no evil Merlin, no Morgana, Camelot was not being destroyed, there was no danger.

_Danger… no danger, everything is fine. _Arthur breathed a sigh of relief and tried to settle back down into his bed. He pulled the sheets up over himself and shivered. Then he sat up so fast that his vision went black for a moment. This was not his bed. Quickly glancing around Arthur found himself to be in Gaius's chambers.

Suddenly all the events that happened earlier came surging back to him. The knights and himself had returned from their hunting trip. On that same hunting trip they had discovered that Merlin was a sorcerer. Lancelot had explained a few things just to keep the rest of them satisfied but he would not reveal more without Merlin's permission. So they had come back, only to be attacked by a sorcerer. He was hit on the head with a large piece of rock. He had blacked out.

Arthur groaned, this was one hell of a week so far. As far as he could see there was no way for it to get worse.

"Arthur!" the door to Merlin's room burst open and Merlin, looking like he was still half asleep, jumped down the few stairs that led up to his room and ran over to Arthur. Then promptly fell on his face when he slipped on a rug.

Letting out an indignant squeak as he struggled to get up, Merlin looked hilarious. Arthur couldn't help but laugh. His servant sprawled out on the floor, still attempting to get up, and was wearing an off- white shirt that was to large for his skinny body, and some grey sleeping trousers that hung loosely off his narrow hips. His face had been a mix of pure panic when he came barreling through his door, but as he finally sat up he had relaxed, and it was clearly evident of how tired the black haired man actually was.

The king began to let out a sarcastic remark about how uncoordinated Merlin was when he went rigid. His nightmare came back to him in pieces, he could barley remember it anymore but the parts he could disturbed him. He unconsciously tried to back up from the man across from him, but seeing as he was in a bed it didn't work out to well.

Luckily Merlin did not seem to notice his sudden tense and cautious demeanor, or if he did he didn't comment on it. "Arthur," Merlin grinned with relief, " You're awake, finally!"

Arthur didn't know how to respond, "Um… yes, I am,"

"That's good."

There were a few minutes of awkward silence between the two.

Arthur coughed and tried to relax a bit, "What happened, with the sorcerer?"

Merlin sighed, looking like he was about to fall asleep at any moment, and answered his king, " After the knights had dealt with and defeated the sorcerer, Gaius had some men take us to his chambers along with some others that were wounded and…" his voice dropped, " killed. But Gaius fixed us up, the wound on your head is just fairly minor bruising along with some cuts, and me," he lifted up his left sleeve, revealing some sore looking gashes that had been sewn up and bandaged with cloth, "I'm pretty much all taken care of, even though my head still hurts a bit."

"That's good then."

"Yeah."

They sat in silence for a dozen or so minutes, before the quite was broken by a soft snore. Arthur looked over at Merlin, who had apparently fallen asleep in a chair that he had pulled over to the side of Arthur's temporary bed during their awkward silence.

Arthur sighed as he to began to feel sleep overtake his mind. Looking at Merlin he admitted to himself that he had doubts about him, he was a sorcerer after all, but the only thing he felt as he drifted off into a much needed sleep was that he felt safe. With Merlin by his side he always did. So with that in mind he slept, promising himself that he would confront his servant at a later time, because right now this just felt right. He had his most loyal and trusted friend by his side, protecting him and watching over him. He smiled as he fell asleep, and unknown to him Merlin was smiling as well, because the king had spoken all of his thoughts aloud. So thinking of the irony at what his friend had whispered about Merlin protecting him the servant fell asleep once more; dreading what the future would bring, but happy as hell because of it. Arthur trusted him.


	4. Verbal Beatings And Revelations

**Author's Note: Here we are, I would have gotten this up sooner but I had a bad case of the flu. Not fun I can tell you. I'm still pretty sick, but hopefully I'll get better soon. Anyways though, I'm pretty happy with this chapter, I was struggling about how the characters should be reacting, but I think it came out ok, I guess. I hope you like it. :)**

**Reviewers! Thank you's go out to: **_nycorrall, Un-ended tales, Emmocloe, Kaminari Rin, angelrider13, Alaia Skyhawk, Magic Cabbage, lozzabluebell,_nerdygangsta, **and** StormCirce**.**

**Enjoy the chapter**

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><p>Waking up with a comical yawn, Merlin arched his back and lifted his arms up over his head to stretch. Maybe sleeping in a hard, cold, wooden chair was not one of his best ideas. Grimacing as he tried to roll out the kinks in his neck by rolling his shoulders the young warlock spared a glance at the bed that Arthur had been occupying the night before. It didn't come as a shock to him that Arthur had left before Gaius and himself had woken, <em>Arthur is perfectly fit to walk around now <em>Gaius had said, but still, knowing that Arthur was alive and in possession of the knowledge that he had magic, made Merlin nervous. Terrified even.

From what the blond haired man had said last night as they were both in a satisfied state of near-sleep, Merlin could only gather that Arthur had somehow discovered that he had magic, that he was unsure of Merlin's motives, but trusted him all the same. At least at that moment he said he did. He hoped that the king trusted him to that extent of which he said last night, but if their places were switched, Merlin knew that he would not waste a second before brandishing himself as a untrustworthy and traitorous fool.

Merlin shivered, he remembered Arthur mumbling something about confronting him later. He really didn't know how to deal with that. Dread creeped up his spine as he thought about it. It wasn't like he could approach Arthur himself. He would probably panic at the last second and blurt something out like, "I finished polishing your armour, oh, and yes I have magic and I've been performing it behind your back for about five or so years, now what would you like for breakfast?"

Merlin slapped himself on the face. _That would go just great. I would be fastened to a pyre before the end of the day if I tried that…_

Quickly shaking his head, Merlin tried to clear his mind. He found it a great displeasure to think about the flesh melting flames of the pyre. He'd had his fair share of horrible dreams about being tied to one.

Sighing, he stood up and stretched some more, careful not to open the wounds on his arms. It wasn't like he could avoid meeting with Arthur though. He worked for the man, and would most likely run into him as soon as he left his and Gaius' chambers.

With that same burning fear beginning to take over his mind, Merlin quickly gathered himself and dressed for the day. He tried to pick out his best clothes, just to try and make an impression on Arthur for the best. So when finished getting dressed, he tied his favorite red neckerchief around his throat, and walked quickly across the castle to get to Arthur's chambers.

Upon entering the king's rooms, he glanced around trying to spot a familiar blond head of hair.

"Arthur?" he made his way cautiously into the bedchambers, "Sire?"

Merlin frowned, at this time of day, still fairly early, Arthur would always be at one of the tables in his bedroom working on parchment after parchment of boring records and speeches. But he wasn't here.

Quirking his eyebrows up, Merlin wondered if Arthur was at the training grounds with the knights. There would be no harm done in checking. So turning around he made it about as far as the archway that led to the middle of Arthur's chambers before he was knocked to the ground after receiving an impressive punch to the face.

Merlin hurriedly covered his nose with a hand to see if it was broken before jumping back to his feet. His eyes shot open wide with surprise and horror at seeing his attacker.

Arthur was standing rigid in a fighting stance, his face showing shock and self-loathing at what he'd just done, but only for a brief moment. His teeth were clenched and his hair was semi-plastered to his head, with sweat or water, Merlin didn't know. Merlin's eyes darted to Arthur's hands, expecting a sword, but Arthur held not a sword in his right hand, but a book. Merlin's spell book that he kept hidden underneath the floorboards of his room. He glanced back at Arthur, he looked livid.

Their eyes met and sparks flew. Merlin put up a resolve around his emotions and stared Arthur down, lifting his chin up with a slight air of superiority unbeknownst to himself. He could not afford to lose his temper now, in fear of what either of them might do. Arthur knew that he had magic last night, and he knew that Arthur was questioning what Merlin was up to, what his reasons were for even being in Camelot. But he still had some of Arthur's trust. They were friends even though neither would admit it out loud, and unless his king had discovered something that bothered him so much as to toss that trust away, Merlin could only guess that Arthur was having second thoughts about trusting someone with magic, even if it was Merlin, the same Merlin he had known for five years.

"What the _hell_ is _this_!" Arthur threw the large spell book to the floor, "I wanted to think that I was wrong, that you weren't a sorcerer! Even after what Lancelot said about you being a one I didn't think I really believed him, but now!" he kicked the book over to Merlin, and it thumped quietly at the contact it had with his boot. "I guess that I couldn't really deny that you are one though, after what we saw on that hunting trip, otherwise I probably would not have started searching your chambers for, for I don't even know! Maybe I wanted to be reassured that you weren't a sorcerer, I just, I don't…You- Merlin I don't know what I'm supposed to do!"

Arthur's yelling lost some of his anger towards the end, but still flared in his troubled eyes as he looked Merlin over. His servant's expression had not changed, his face still unreadable as he kept his enigmatic façade.

"What do you _want_ to do?" Merlin fixed his eyes on Arthur's, and gave him a weak smile that was not kind nor bitter as his resolve fought to stay in place.

"I want to know if you trust me!" Arthur blurted out.

Merlin's eyes widened a fraction and he slowly walked closer to Arthur, cautiously making sure that he wouldn't go for his sword. Arthur had no armour on, just his plainly fancy clothes, boots, and belt, along with his sword in it's sheath.

"With my life, sire," they were standing inches apart now, and Merlin spread out his arms as a peaceful gesture, but at the same time it was a challenge, "but do you trust me with yours?"

Arthur replied without hesitation, "Yes."

Merlin looked down, "Then why do you need your sword." It was a statement more than a question. Arthur followed Merlin's gaze to where his own hand, slightly shaking, was placed on the hilt of his sword. Immediately Arthur took his hand away, then regarded Merlin with caution. _Don't act like you haven't been keeping track of his every movement since you walked into this room, you've been regarding him with _caution _this entire time!_ Arthur couldn't help but berate himself and Merlin,

"Do you not feel safe if I have a weapon, after you just said you trusted me with your life?"

"Do you only feel safe around me when you have a weapon, after you said you trust me?" Merlin rebuked and Arthur flinched at his words, then grinned.

"That's one thing I don't ever have to be worried about, and that's being afraid of you. You're such a girl, _Mer_lin." His tone was joking, and for a moment he thought they were in one of their daily arguments with their usual banter.

"Then why'd you punch me." Merlin bit out, irritation and anger prominent in his words.

Arthur paled and scolded himself, _So much for trying to lighten the mood. Bad move Arthur, you're an idiot._

Then he felt a cold shiver go up his spine. He and Merlin were inches apart. He was in a room, alone, with a sorcerer. Who at the moment he was sure had 'murder the king' at the top of his list of things he would not have a problem doing at the moment. In all seriousness, they were close enough that if one of them snapped, much like Arthur had earlier, one of them could go for the others throat. The tension in the room was felt full force by both men.

They may have had trust in one another, but that did not stop the anger and frustration of the situation from leaking out of both of them. Merlin was a sorcerer, Arthur grew up his entire life to the present day being taught that those who practiced magic were evil. That they had no soul and should die for committing such unnatural crimes. Of course he had doubted these teachings greatly over the past few years, but that didn't change that he was unsure of Merlin now. His servant was the same, yes, but what bothered Arthur the most was that Merlin didn't tell him. How was he to know how much more of Merlin's life he didn't know about.

"I'm sorry." As soon as he said it, Arthur knew it was a bad idea.

"You're _sorry_?" Merlin gaped at him, "you almost break my nose because you're a little miffed that I didn't tell you something and you're _sorry_?"

Arthur wouldn't have it, he had every right to be more than a little miffed at his servants actions, or really, what he didn't do when he never mentioned to Arthur that he was a sorcerer. "Well, maybe I wouldn't have gotten so angry if you were hiding something that in no way pertained to me! But you just had to be hiding that you're a bloody sorcerer!"

"I'm not even a sorcerer you great prat! I'm a warlock!"

"Is there a difference? It doesn't matter anyway because you lied to me!"

"Have you ever thought," Merlin growled out, "that the reason I never told you was that I had, and still have, a rather large concern about being executed for something I never had a choice in!"

Arthur shook his head in exasperation and shot a puzzled glare at Merlin, who had found it appropriate during there fight to start flinging his arms around while he yelled, almost whacking Arthur a few times, by mistake or on purpose Arthur didn't know. "What do you mean you never had a choice in performing sorcery? It was your own damn choice to study it!"

Merlin snapped. Letting out a frustrated shout the black haired man sent Arthur flying across the room and into a wall. Merlin didn't use much force, just enough to take the breath out of Arthur's lungs for a moment as he slammed against the wall. Merlin marched over to the blond and lifted him up of the ground, pinning him to the wall by his shoulders. Then, leaning in to growl almost desperately into his ear, Merlin spoke, "I never had a choice in learning magic. Never. I was born with it Arthur. That's what being a warlock is, I was born with my magic, it's a part of me, it's who I am. I was using magic before I could even walk, Arthur. Magic comes to me as naturally as it does to breath. As naturally as you have the talent to fight with a sword, I have my talent with magic." Merlin's eyes were glowing gold now, as if trying to emphasize his last point, "The best way I can put it, is that, I _am_ magic, Arthur."

"Oh," was the first thing that Arthur responded with, "okay. That explains a bit actually."

Merlin looked dumbfounded. Arthur was sure that he looked about the same.

Merlin looked like he was struggling to form words, his eyes still glowing that dangerous gold color, "…Okay?" Arthur couldn't tell if Merlin was asking a question or making a statement. He just nodded and tried not to look at his friend's eyes. They were very, distracting, and you could even say pretty.

Merlin tried again, "You just accept what I said, that easily?"

Arthur nodded again, "I'm sure that I'm in some amount of shock right now, and I'll probably pester y- no I will pester you, about all of this later, but right now I… What, _are_ you doing you idiot?" Arthur looked down to where Merlin had fallen to the floor, laughing.

"Oi, what's so funny?" he frowned, looking at his servant who was holding his sides in an attempt to not spill his guts out laughing.

"You just, I tell you my, haha, I tell you a secret about myself that, pfffft, that could mean my life and death and you just, you just…!" the warlock never finished his sentence as he couldn't hold his amusement in any longer. He laughed and laughed, and when Arthur tried to help him up off the floor, Merlin accidentally pulled him down to the floor with him. They both burst out, howling with laughter as they tried to get up, but settled for just remaining on the floor.

"You really are a deadly threat Merlin, you're going to make me laugh so much I'll have a stomach ache!" Arthur grinned, his comment causing another bout of laughter from his black haired friend.

Once they calmed down, the king noticed the decent amount of blood that had begun to dry on Merlin's face. Without letting Merlin ask any questions he reached out for the neckerchief that was around the other man's neck, and untied it. Then used it to shoddily wipe up some of the blood before tossing it into Merlin's lap, a few blood stains now visible on his beloved piece of clothing.

Merlin looked at Arthur fondly but said nothing, so Arthur took the initiative, "Um, the punching thing. Was, uncalled for…"

"You're forgiven… _sire." _Merlin replied honestly, but he added a little emphasis on the sire as a tease. He didn't want to think that Arthur could get away with everything.

Flustered at the trust and willingness to forgive that Merlin showed him, albeit cheekily, Arthur rebuked the only way he knew how, "Well, it's not like I care what you think anyways. I am the king of Camelot, and I do not have to concern myself with your personal matters, idiot."

"Prat."

"Stupid."

"Cabbage-head."

"…What?"

Merlin leered, "Was that insult to much for your intelligence?"

Arthur cuffed him on the ear, "You're really something, Merlin."

Merlin grinned and tied his bloodied neckerchief back around his neck, "I'll take that as a compliment."


End file.
